Vibration

Vibration or oscillation means quick moving back and forth (or up and down) about a point of equilibrium.[1] The vibration may be periodic (having a pattern) or random. Something that is vibrating may shake at the same time. If it vibrates in a regular way, it may produce a musicalnote because it can make the air to vibrate. This vibration will send soundwaves to the ear and to the brain.

In structural dynamics and, particularly, in earthquake engineering, vibrations may be, unfortunately, bad: they may cause the structure to fail.

The time it takes a vibrating object to go back and forth completely is the period. The number of back-and-forth movements in one second is its frequency, measured in Hertz (Hz). The farthest possible distance from the equilibrium point is the amplitude.

Types of vibration

Free vibration occurs when vibration is set off with a push and allowed to vibrate freely. Examples of this type of vibration are pulling a child back on a swing and then letting go or hitting a tuning fork and letting it ring. The mechanical system will then vibrate at a 'Natural frequency' and gradually wind down.

Forced vibration is when an alternating force or motion is applied to a mechanical system. Examples of this type of vibration include

Tools

Content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use Privacy Policy. Content of this web page is sourced from wikipedia ( http://simple.wikipedia.org). Some content of the original page may have been edited to make it more suitable for younger readers, unless otherwise noted.